The Texas Senate race continues to heat up, with both sides taking jabs at each other. On June 18, Democratic candidate James Talarico demanded that his Republican opponent, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, release communications from his office related to a plea deal offered to a Texas man charged with sexually abusing a young boy.
"If there's anything that all Texans can agree on — Democrats and Republicans, progressives and conservatives — it's that no one, not even the attorney general of Texas, should be able to cover up crimes against children," Talarico said.
During a public appearance at the McLennan County Courthouse in Waco, Texas, Talarico called on Paxton's office to release information about the deal offered to Adam Dean Hoffman, a 49-year-old man who, according to The Texas Tribune, spent 30 days in jail after admitting to molesting the victim and surrendering his law license. The deal allegedly allowed Hoffman to avoid registering as a sex offender.
The Texas Tribune, The Texas Newsroom and KWBU obtained trial transcripts and court records showing that the case ended in a mistrial and that the victim refused to testify a second time, leaving prosecutors with the choice of offering Hoffman a deal or forcing the boy to return to court through a subpoena.
Talarico: I was required by law to report any indication there was abuse at home, and I would hope that the top law enforcement official in Texas would be held to the same standard as a middle school teacher. Ken Paxton had the opportunity to protect a child, but instead he… pic.twitter.com/9I5ea3TSCd — Acyn (@Acyn) June 19, 2026
The outlets reported that Assistant Attorneys General Brenda Cantu and Dorian Cotlar said in a letter sent last month to a state lawmaker that the decision was "made entirely in the best interest of the child involved."
The Democratic candidate noted that after the plea deal was announced, the victim's mother alleged that her son's case had received special treatment because Hoffman's attorney also represented Nate Paul, a real estate developer and Paxton campaign donor who, according to the outlets, played a central role in the attorney general's failed impeachment case.
In that case, Paxton was accused of accepting bribes from Paul and using the power of his office to benefit the developer in exchange for personal favors, including a job for Paxton's mistress and costly home renovations.
In response, Madison Cercy, a spokesperson for the Paxton campaign, said in a statement that Talarico's actions were "disgusting" and accused him of wanting a sexual abuse victim to be forced into the same room as his abuser.
"Every time James Talarico chooses to bring this case up he is intentionally re-traumatizing the child victim for personal gain," Cercy said. "OAG prosecutors have already released information on this, but Talarico cares more about turning a child victim into a political pawn than the truth. The bottom line is that we stand with the child victim."
A recent Texas Pulse poll cited by The Hill found the race between Talarico and Paxton effectively tied, with both candidates receiving 46 percent support. Among independent voters, Talarico held a 14-point lead.
Arrmadillo on June 21st, 2026 at 18:47 UTC »
> The Democratic candidate noted that after the plea deal was announced, the victim's mother alleged that her son's case had received special treatment because Hoffman's attorney also represented Nate Paul, a real estate developer and Paxton campaign donor who, according to the outlets, played a central role in the attorney general's failed impeachment case.
Here’s some additional background:
X - Jeff Leach - May 15, 2026
“Statement from the Victim's Mother
This case was treated differently because of who Adam Hoffman was and who represented him. CPS, the police, the Attorney General's office under Ken Paxton, and the judge all bent the system to protect him instead of protecting my son.
They made sure my son was in the room when they raised the plea deal - knowing he didn't want to testify again — and they used that against him. They pushed the deal through with or without our approval. That is not justice. That is manipulation.
CPS even told Hoffman's neighbor, ‘don't worry, your daughters aren't his type.’ Imagine hearing that when your own child was molested for three years. That is disgusting. That is betrayal.
The police delayed his arrest, the Attorney General's office ignored evidence, and the judge bent bond rules to spare Hoffman ‘hardship.’ Then I learned Hoffman's attorney was Gerry Morris, the same lawyer who represented Nate Paul, a central figure in Paxton's corruption scandal and one of his financial contributors. Paxton's office gave Hoffman a sweetheart deal. That is corruption.
Why are the people in charge of protecting us getting away with this? My son deserved protection. Instead, every authority protected his abuser. Ken Paxton must be held accountable. Texas needs new laws that protect victims, not predators.
May 15, 2026
My name is Melissa Dieterich, and I am the spokesperson for the family on whom this grave miscarriage of justice was inflicted.
The victim's mother has been my friend for decades. The fact that Attorney General Ken Paxton allowed this man to get away with molesting and sexually abusing her son for three years is completely disqualifying. He didn't just harm an innocent child - he stole his life, and the so-called ‘consequences’ Paxton's office offered weren't merely insufficient — they were a slap in the face to every survivor who has ever trusted the justice system to protect them.
You don't recover from that kind of trauma. Any victim of sexual abuse spends a lifetime trying to rebuild what was taken - their sense of safety, their confidence, their ability to trust. Those scars never disappear.
Adam Hoffman could have faced life in prison. Instead, Ken Paxton and his office offered him a deal that kept him off the sex-offender registry and included no new jail time. Who is the next child that Adam Hoffman is going to abuse? How will anyone know that they are living next to, or working with, an admitted child sex-abuser?
Even after the judge intervened, this man is still serving only 60 days in prison - and he still isn't on the sex-offender registry.
The family deserves justice, and Ken Paxton does not deserve a promotion to the US Senate.”
JiveChicken00 on June 21st, 2026 at 18:43 UTC »
Am a little surprised that child abuse is still illegal in Texas, given how long Paxton has been attorney general.
Beesweetiee on June 21st, 2026 at 18:26 UTC »
Rep. Talarico is exactly right to push for absolute transparency here. When open records requests regarding something as grave as a child abuse case are systematically stonewalled by the state's top legal office, it raises massive red flags about executive overreach and accountability